Amazon sabotaged by outraged Michael Jackson fans

We’ve discussed before why you shouldn’t trust product review sites, noting the commercial industry which has sprung up with the sole aim of rigging product rankings by giving inferior items superior ratings or reviews – but the converse situation is equally troubling.

As reported by The New York Times, a group of unhappy Michael Jackson fans (calling themselves the late singer’s ‘Rapid Response Team to Media Attacks’) have staged a coordinated takedown of a controversial new biography of the troubled entertainer by encouraging fans to bombard Amazon’s entry on the title with a flood of negative reviews.

Untouchable: The Strange Life and Tragic Death of Michael JacksonÂ by Randall Sullivan is said to offer a largely sympathetic view of the deceased artist’s final years but has nonetheless drawn the ire of the fan group for containing supposed inaccuracies and ‘exploiting’ the singer’s legacy.

The group’s Facebook page states that “Defending the king and promoting his legacy is our mission” and urges fans: “Please continue to post comments on the website and fight like HELL for MJ!” The group has also posted a formal response to the NYT article, citing the US Constitution and attacking the story as “irresponsible journalism… questioning the principled stand of a group of concerned citizens.”